Because nothing can be kept hidden in the tech world anymore, reports of a so-called Powerbeats Pro began surfacing just recently, and days slater, it's now confirmed. Though there was little left to announce, Beats has officially revealed its latest wireless buds, the $250 Powerbeats Pro, which bears a lot of similarities to — along with notable differences from — Apple's AirPods.
Powerbeats Pro
The Powerbeats Pro is 23 percent tinier and 17 percent lighter than the Powerbeats 3, according to Beats. Since they're workout-intended, expect them to be water- and sweat-resistant as well. There are controls on both earbuds, so users can access volume and track settings from either side.
The Powerbeats Pro has the same over-the-ear hook design as the Powerbeats 3 Apple and Beats released in 2016. They're designed for workout and other heavy-duty activities, and that hook helps keep the buds in place when the user is flailing around.
Powerbeats Pro Specs
They also have optical sensors, which means they automatically pause music playback when removed from the ears intentionally or accidentally, then resume playing once they're put back in. Beats also claims that it improved audio quality for calls on this new model, using a combination of a speech-detecting accelerometer and two beam-forming microphones on each side.
The same Apple H1 chip inside the new AirPods is also in the Powerbeats Pro, which promises an always-listening Siri, in addition to improved battery efficiency, faster pairing, and others. Thanks to this new processor, all a user has to do to invoke Siri is say, "Hey Siri," no tapping required.
Beats says the Powerbeats Pro will last nine hours on a single charge, and the included charging cases adds 15 more hours on top of that. It also supports Beats' Fast Fuel feature, which adds 4.5 hours of battery life in just 15 minutes or 1.5 hours in five minutes.
The Powerbeats Pro will be released in May and will be available at Apple's online and retail stores for $250. Users can choose between black, ivory, moss, and navy.
